2015 DEATHS ON THE JOB
Since October, the beginning of the federal government’s operating year, the following deaths on the job have occurred in the area overseen by the Cincinnati OSHA office:
- two men killed after falling off a Butler County water tower in Reily Twp. last October;
- a man electrocuted at Cohen, a metal recycling plant in West Carrollton, also in October;
- an individual who tripped and fell during a fire drill and died from medical complications during surgery in Cincinnati;
- a maintenance worker killed in November at a Fairfield bowling alley after getting caught in a machine he was trying to repair;
- Brandon Carl, 35, of Kentucky, who died in January when Kokosing Construction Inc. crews were dismantling an old, unused bridge exit and the ramp fell onto Interstate 75 approaching downtown Cincinnati; and
- Manuel Aquino, 70, of West Chester Twp., killed Tuesday after he was trapped by the equipment he was working on, a front-end loader, at Art's Rental Equipment in Sharonville
SOURCE: Cincinnati Area OSHA Director Bill Wilkerson
A Fairfield bowling alley faces $45,500 worth of federal fines for work safety violations that Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials say lead to the death of a 53-year-old employee.
David Geiger, an employee at Northwest Lanes on Happy Valley Drive, was killed Nov. 6 when his hooded sweatshirt was caught in a pinsetter. Geiger was trying to retrieve a bowling ball. Friends told The Journal-News that Geiger had been working in the bowling alley business for 30 years.
Federal investigators have determined that the machine’s operating parts were improperly exposed and the business “lacked adequate guards” to prevent employees from being injured by the exposed machinery. Officials cited the alley for eight serious violations.
“A wife, children and a grandchild lost a loved one in a preventable workplace tragedy,” said Bill Wilkerson, OSHA’s area director in Cincinnati, in a written statement. “Northwest Lanes had identified issues with its 1970s-era equipment, but it did not ensure workers were protected from dangerous parts.”
The owner of Northwest Lanes could not be reached Monday for comment.
The bowling center, which employs 26 people, has requested an informal conference with OSHA officials, according to the federal agency. The company will contest the violations and fines, which could go to an independent review panel for consideration.
Prior to the Geiger’s death, Northwest Lanes had no history of federal workplace violations. The bowling center has been open since 1976, according to the business’ website.
Geiger is one of seven workers to die in the region on the job since October, the beginning of the federal budget year, according to the Cincinnati OSHA office.
Most recently, Manuel Aquino, 70, of West Chester Twp., was killed in March after he was trapped by the equipment he was working on, a front-end loader, at Art’s Rental Equipment in Sharonville.
Last year, OSHA investigated 46 fatal work accidents statewide, down from 48 in 2012, but a major increase from 38 work-related deaths in 2011, Wilkerson previously told this newspaper.
When OSHA investigates a deadly accident, it searches the entire facility for safety hazards and not just the hazards that may have led to death, said Scott Allen, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Labor’s regional office in Chicago. OSHA is a division of the labor department.
“We found other violations in addition to the ones directly related to the fatality,” Allen said about the Fairfield business.
Three violations were directly related to Geiger’s death, including not having a proper lockout or tagout procedure, which powers-down equipment when maintenance is being performed, he said. Also, multiple bowling lanes had unguarded machinery in the back where the worker was pinned, he said.
When determining the amount to fine a company, government investigators consider the company’s work safety history and size, he added.
“It’s significant,” he said. “The fact is these are serious violations and the unfortunate thing is an individual lost their life due to safety hazards.”
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